All I Want For Christmas Is To Be Faster Than You

Posted on by lindsay
Over the winter, I obsess about other people's training. This is less of a concern during the racing season, because the very nature of racing lets you know where you stand in relation to your competition. If somebody consistently beats you, they are probably faster (or you are doing it wrong). The winter provides no such mechanism for evaluation. Until racing season begins, there is no way to know whose winter training plan was better, who was more dedicated, and who spent too much time snuggling with the fruitcake and eggnog. As a result, two things happen for me. First, training becomes more robotic and less driven by passion; each workout is little more than something to get done. If I could remain unconscious while plowing through every interval and rep, I would. There isn't the fire that's present during the racing season, where training equals brief periods of high ...continue reading.

Does this fur make me look fat?

Posted on by lindsay
Things Scout does now that he is blind: 1. Eat 2. Poop This is a complete accounting of his activities. Because he has extremely limited vision, he no longer likes to walk at all. Not that he was ever spry - on his best days, he would jog for half a block before refusing to move faster than a slow walk. But now he sometimes gives up mid-walk and will not move. It's great when I'm running late and he won't budge from a spot on the sidewalk. The result of this complete immobility plus his increased appetite from his medications is that he is rapidly becoming a polar bear of lard that does little but yearn for kibble. [caption id="attachment_2341" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="The impressive thing about his wistful gaze is that he is blind. It's like being leered at by Ray Charles."][/caption] He also barks at the couch when ...continue reading.

Things That Go Bump In The Road

Posted on by lindsay
I am coming down with a cold. This is a minor inconvenience, really, but as a cyclist in the throes of winter training, it is also derailing and frustrating. I wanted to (okay, that's a lie, perhaps 'felt the need to' is more fitting) go to the gym today to stay on schedule, but as the day progressed and my symptoms worsened, I settled for having an ice cream bar, two lattes, and a large serving of pumpkin seeds. [Side story: At my parents' house last night, my father was eating home-roasted pumpkin seeds out of a bag of more pumpkin seeds than I have ever seen. He explained that he collected the neighbors' old pumpkins and gutted them to get the seeds. The pumpkins, not the neighbors. He boasted that he still had several more pumpkins to carve so we could have even more seeds. Other subjects we covered ...continue reading.

Dear Fred.

Posted on by lindsay
I understand that we are both on road bikes and going in the same direction. It's great that we're both riding, isn't it? However, there are several things you are wearing that indicate that it is unlikely that you plus me equals peloton. These things include, but are not limited to: 1. A fanny pack. Frankly, these are an abomination both on and off the bike. 2. Any type of mirror. 3. Clothing that is baggy enough to allow the unnoticed smuggling of anything larger than a potato. 4. Something tied around your waist. 5. Any single article of apparel with more than five colors. 6. Shoes that do not attach to your pedals. This does not include sandals with cleats; those are unspeakable and I don't even know where to begin. 7. A helmet visor. 8. A seatbag that, were a horse to find it dangling between his hind ...continue reading.

The Best Way To Win At DCCX Was From The Sidelines

Posted on by lindsay
My day began with the 10am Sunday ride. Apparently Russ L. has been hiking in the Shenandoah Mountains recently (hiking? isn't that something cyclists do only when stranded with a flat?), so he was less inclined to tear my legs off on the hills of Maryland. That was nice, except for the part where other people (Eli!) did that instead. (Don't let his perfectly-combed hair fool you; beneath that lies a savage animal waiting to strike when you're down.) I resisted becoming a droplet [drop*let n. one who has been dropped] and finished the ride feeling like I'd suffered sufficiently to earn a day of standing in a field, drinking and watching other people suffer. Which brings me to DCCX. To all of you who raced, please accept my warmest expression of gratitude. Without you and your insane willingness to run up hills and leap over barriers while carrying your bicycle, ...continue reading.

On Feeling Off

Posted on by lindsay
As the racing season comes to a close each year, my rest month looms in the distance like a beautiful oasis. Free time! No suffering! Riding only when the urge moves me! Weeknights filled with dinners out, relaxing times on the couch, and glasses of wine downed with little regard for impact on training. And then rest month comes and I realize that I am a cyclist and taking time off the bike is like taking time off from having a pulse. Even in the hardest weeks of training, when the intervals are brutal and the rides take all of my free time, the exhaustion makes me feel more alive than anything. I like actively working towards my goals. I like feeling sore from a hard workout, starving because I'm training constantly, and desperate for a single rest day to recover a little. I like knowing that I can deep ...continue reading.